Discussion of the Prior Art
In the laundering of fabric materials such as wool, silk, cotton, synthetics, etc. it is conventional to add one or more conditioning agents at some point in the process in order to impart or enhance softness, antistatic properties, resistance to bacteria and the like and to reduce such untoward effects as tangling, wrinkling, knotting etc. Conditioning agents for such uses are well known. Generally, the agent is added to the last rinse of the wash cycle. However, certain inherent disadvantages have spurred attempts to make feasible the addition of such agents at some point in the laundering process other than the wash cycle. Thus, the presence together in the wash or rinse medium of anionic detergent and cationic material often leads to the formation of unsightly, insoluble precipitates and consequent fabric staining. This tendency severely limits the use of cationic softener. Addition thereof is necessarily delayed until some point in the laundering process wherein anionic is at least substantially depleted. Often, the user is required to attend at least the wash-rinse cycle of the operation in order to add the conditioner at the correct interval. By effecting such treatments in the dryer the foregoing disadvantages are effectively overcome. Moreover, there is no necessity for the conditioning agent to be substantive to the fabrics and to adhere to them strongly in preference to the solvent of the dilute solutions of the wash and rinse cycles.
Uniform distribution of the conditioning agent in the dryer whereby to achieve effective contact thereof with the washed fabrics, i.e. fibrous materials in a manner convenient to the user is not, however, easily attained. Thus, the use of liquid softener sprays for direction onto the fabrics or, by pretreatment, onto the internal walls of the dryer can be costly. Moreover, the risk of spotting, staining, etc. due to local applications of excess conditioning agent may be significant. The use of conditioning articles, generally comprising a base or substrate, which may be form-retaining or flexible, coated and/or impregnated with conditioner provides improvement. In use, the conditioner is removable to the fabrics by the staining may be severe; for example those stains developed due to the contacting of cationic conditioning agents, e.g. quaternary ammonium salts, with materials containing color bodies or heavy metal ions such as ferrous or ferric ion may be removable, if at all, only by dry cleaning.
The use of form-retaining as opposed to flexible bases to avoid the problems associated with the structural deformations of flexible bases likewise presents problems. Although not difficult to locate by the user, as is the case with flexible conditioning articles, they must nevertheless be removed upon completion of the treatment cycle. Furthermore, they must be of a certain density to prevent them from riding atop the laundry load and thus effectively contacting but a portion of the fabric being treated. Prior art relevant to the foregoing discussion include the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,442,692; 3,632,396; 3,633,538; 3,650,816; 3,676,199; 3,686,025; 3,696,034; 3,698,095; 3,826,682; 3,843,395; 3,895,128; 3,944,494; 3,945,936; 3,947,971; 3,956,556 and 4,098,937.
To overcome the foregoing, conditioner articles have been proposed equipped with means for their temporary attachment to an inner wall portion of the degree or washer. In general, the attaching means include clips, hook and loop assemblies, e.g. that available commercially as Velco fastener, and a variety of other mechanical means. U.S. Pat. No. 3,634,947 describes a conditioner article comprising a base of thin flexible material such as paper or plastic coated in a first side, i.e. major surface with a conditioning agent, waxy in nature, and preferably a fabric softener or antistatic agent, and on the opposite side with a pressure sensitive adhesive. The latter enables attachment of the article to the internal wall portion of the dryer apparatus in form-retaining relationship therewith. Expedients of this type avoid to a great extent the problems encountered with articles adapted for commingling with the fabrics. The use of adhesive attachment means involves the risk that bonding strength may be undermined by virture of the high humidity-high temperature conditions extant in the dryer or washed apparatus. Softening of the adhesive may well occur leading to stripping of the article from the wall portion and particularly under the high impact conditions characterizing article-fabric contacting. The article thus becomes commingled with the fabrics. The use of hook and loop means is similarly disadvantaged since attachment thereof to the wall portion is invariably by adhesive means. To the extent that buckling, slippage, etc. of the adhesively attached element occurs, form retaining relationship of the element with the wall portion is not maintained. Such articles are somewhat inconvenient to manipulate since the user must first remove a stripping layer protecting the adhesive. As will be appreciated, the handling of a ncessarily high-tack adhesive under laundering conditions can be extremely difficult. Other methods involving some structural modification of the dryer apparatus in order to fixedly engage the conditioner article thereto can be economically prohibitive.
A primary object of the invention is to provide a fabric conditioner article wherein the foregoing and related disadvantages are eliminated or at least mitigated to a substantial extent.
Another object of the invention is to provide such an article wherein any necessity for the use of external means whatever and as typified by adhesive, clips, hook-loop fastener elements and the like to enable attachment of said article, to an internal wall portion of a rotable drum washer, dryer or equivalent container means for fabrics is eliminated.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide such an article which may be readily and simply recharged with conditioner by the user upon exhaustion of the prior supply enabling effective repetitive use of such article.
Still another object of the invention is to provide such an article capable of being attached to an internal wall portion of the dryer, washer or equivalent apparatus by simple hand placement thereof to achieve a stable union of mating surfaces by simple contact thereof, said union being substantially immune to the temperature, humidity, solvent, etc. conditions prevailing in said apparatus.
A further object of the invention is to provide such an article wherein the disadvantages normally associated with conditioning articles designed for commingling with the fabrics being treated such as flaking off of conditions, entrapment of the article, and the like are eliminated.
A still further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for conditioning fabrics compressing an automatic laundry dryer drum or similar container for laundering fabrics incorporating the conditioner article herein.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent hereinafter as the description proceeds.
The foregoing and related objects are attained in accordance with the invention which in its broader aspects provides a unitary conditioner article for dispensing conditioning agent in an automatic laundry dryer drum or similar apparatus for containing fabric to be treated, comprising a first layer consisting of a magnetized rubbery polymeric material adapted to forcibly, magnetically engage an internal metal surface of said apparatus in form retaining relationship and therewith a second layer integral with and overlying said first layer comprising a liquid permeable sorptive sheet material for containing and dispensing said conditioning agent.
In a further aspect, the invention provides an apparatus for conditioning fabrics comprising an automatic laundry dryer drum or similar container for fabric materials, means for rotating the drum and tumbling fabric materials contained therein and wherein an internal metallic surface portion of said drum has magnetically attached thereto the aforedescribed conditioner article.
The invention is described by reference to the accompanying drawing wherein like reference numerals designate similar parts throughout the several views and wherein: